[TIPs] Button Alias #2: How to emulate a double-tap input by just pressing a gamepad button once?

Some games require directional keys (e.g. W,A,S,D) to be tapped twice quickly (and hold) to make the character run fast instead of walk.

Can I emulate such an input by just pressing the gamepad button once?

Yes, it is possible, but a bit convoluted…

Button Alias function

JoyToKey has a function called “Button Alias”. It’s very powerful and can be used for two different scenarios:

1. Assign more (virtual) buttons beyond the number of buttons physically available
2. Assign multiple functions for one button input

This page explains how the 2nd scenario can solve double-tap use case, by combining two inputs (quick tap, followed by a long press) for a single button input. For the 1st scenario, please refer to the other page.

• Firstly, Button Alias feature enables you to combine two assignment definitions for a single button. In the screenshot below, both Button1 and Button21 are configured to be triggered when Button1 is pressed.

• Next, configure one button (e.g. Button21) to only trigger the target action for a short duration (e.g. 20 msec), by only assigning “Input1” for a sequential execution.

• Finally, configure the other button (e.g. Button1) to only trigger the target action after a certain duration (e.g. 100 msec), by assigning “Input2” only.

With these configurations, when a gamepad Button1 is pressed, the target action will be

1. immediately pressed for 20 msec
2. then released
3. and then pressed again after 100 msec
4. and will be hold until a gamepad button is released